Samsung readies app store for 'normal' phones

Samsung set to expand its app store to feature phones

Developers have been given access to Samsung's TouchWiz portal, meaning applications can now be developed for feature phones.

Applications have been the plaything of smartphones for a long time, but Samsung's widget-enabled TouchWiz phones (such as the Jet S8000 and the Pixon 12) will now be able to access downloadable apps.

The Samsung Mobile Innovator platform isn't limited to the feature phones though, as it also works on the TouchWiz-skinned Windows Mobile phones (like the forthcoming Omnia II) or Symbian-based efforts (like the Samsung i8910HD).

TouchWiz explained

TouchWiz is a skin that allows users to drag and drop widgets onto the home screen of touch-enabled phones, and runs on the top of all three OS's from Samsung (WinMo, Symbian and Samsung's own proprietary UI).

The widgets are easily developed using CSS, Java or HTML code (well, easy for the development community, that is) and according to Samsung can be easily tweaked to work on other platforms, including Samsung Series 7 LED TVs.

Head on over to Samsung's Mobile Innovator site to download the SDK and get developing if that's your thing.

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Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grown with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.